Newt and the first girl gladder
by GraceKerr-author4life
Summary: This is my first story-hope you like it! It follows a 'love story' ish kind of thing with Newt and a girl. It has other character too, takes place before Thomas and IS ON GOING. All ideas for this go to James Dashner(who is an amazing author!)
1. Chapter 1

ANNA-

I wake up in a metal box my head feeling fuzzy. It's moving quickly. I try and stand up but fall back to the ground. I stand up regaining my balance. Suddenly the lift comes to a stop. I see a stream of sunlight from above. There are shouts from above.

"It's a girl." Someone says from above me.

"I call dibs!"

"What does she look like?"

"Is she hot?"

"I call second dibs!"

I hear boy's voices range out. I cross my arms and shout at the top of my lungs.

"I have ears and I am not some toy you can fight over." There is stunned silence from above. Someone jumps into the box. A boy. I don't remember anything from my past, just that I was taught to be a warrior, a fighter.

"Who are you? Where am I?" I spin around. I swipe a quick kick to his knees and he falls to the ground. I see the boy in front of me, on the ground. He has sandy blonde hair plastered to his forehead. He's wearing a pale orange tank top and cargo pants. His warm brown eyes pierce into me.

"It's okay. Your safe here, in the Glade." He sits up. I back away feeling uneasy. He stands up and comes towards me. I duck under his arms and go to the other side of the lift. He comes at me again. I jump straight up landing on my feet near a few boys. They all back away from me. I look around. I see an exit. To make it look I'm not going to run I bypass the exit and look at the group of buildings. Pushing through the boys I run towards the buildings then turn the other way heading for the exit.

"She's running! Don't let her in the Maze!" Someone shouts behind me. I know better to not look back when your running, but I can hear them all chasing me. Someone tackles me. I push them off and keep running. I run into the 'maze'. Suddenly my temperature drops. I'm cold not hot. I start running through the Maze, understanding why it's called the Maze. Out of nowhere I run into another boy full force. We both fall. Sitting up I rub my aching skull. The boy across from me rubs his head.

"Whoa. Where are you coming from?" He asks standing up shakily. He offers me a hand. I stand up without his help.

"Some place called the Glade. I'm trying to leave. Any idea how to do that?" I ask moving away from him.

"I wouldn't leave the Glade. It's very dangerous, especially at night." The boy says.

"I don't care. I have to go back..." I say realizing I don't remember where I'm from.

"Go back to where?" The boy asks cautiously.

"Why can't I remember where I'm from? What does this place do to you?" I demand, turning away from the boy running my hands through my hair.

"Look. This happens to everyone. Let's get you back to the Glade where everything will be explained. I'm Minho, by the way." Minho says starting to run away from me. I don't follow. I start running the other way. He runs at me, really fast.

"I wouldn't do that!" He shouts as I turn the corner and another corner. He catches up to me and grabs my arm. I twist him over my back and he lands hard on the Maze floor. I try running again but he grabs my ankle, I fall. He stands up pulling me with him. He has my arms trapped behind my back making it really hard to move. He stands far enough away so I can't kick him.

"Let me go!" I yell. He shakes his head pulling me back the way we came.

"We're going to run now. You're coming with me." He says still gripping my arms tightly. "If you try anything I will carry you back to the Glade." He says sternly. Rolling my eyes we run back to the Glade, him holding my arms the entire time. I'm struggling the whole way. I can keep up with him the entire time.

"Your fast and your not even panting hard." Minho comments as I study the other boys crowding around. Minho still has my arms.

"Whatever." I mumble. Two boys come forward, the one from the box and a new one who looks in charge.

"I'm Alby, in charge of this place. Welcome to the Glade." He reaches out a hand, touching my shoulder. I back away, bumping into Minho.

"Don't touch me." My voice comes out in a deathly calm tone. I sound scary. Alby shares a look with the boy from the box, an uneasy look.

"It's okay. You're safe now. I'm Newt, second in command." The boy from the box says kindly. I eye him up and down. He's strong. His features reveal a tough life but a kind soul. I kick Minho in the knee and he goes down. I do a back flip towards a boy and grab a knife out of his belt. I hold it up, wielding it to anyone who comes forward.

"Just calm down. We aren't going to hurt you." Newt says stepping forward.

"What is this place?" I ask looking him in the eye.

"It's a Maze. We have to find a way out. But we're safe in the Glade. So put down the knife and come with us." Alby says. Newt takes another step towards me. He's close enough for me to reach him.

"Newt! Watch out!" Minho warns standing up just as I grab Newt's arm, spin him around, and place the knife to his throat.

"Look I'd rather not die today so if you could just put the knife down." Newt says quietly.

"Then tell me why I'm here and I'll let you go." I say sternly.

"We don't know why we're here! We have no memories of outside the Glade!" Alby shouts.

"We really don't know." Newt says softly.

"And I should trust you because?" I say releasing Newt. He steps back rubbing his neck with one hand.

"Thank you." He says keeping eye contact with me. I look around. As I look at all the other boys a sudden pain enters my mind.

"Agh! Make it stop!" My hands shoot up to my ears, covering them. I drop the knife. But the pain is too awful to endure. The sound becomes deafening. I see the uneasy looks passed between everyone.

"Ugh!" I scream out sinking to my knees as the sound comes again, but way more intense. Out of the corner of my blurry eyes I see Newt kneel besides me, even after I almost killed him he's still being nice. He looks concerned and a little scared.

"It's okay. Take a deep breath. Out, in. Deep breathes. It will be okay, just calm down. Out, in. Shh. It is okay." He says calmingly. Slowly I take my hands away from my ears. My vision is clear and the sound is gone. Newt is sitting besides me holding one of my arms steady. Alby and Minho sit in front of us. But everyone else is gone.

"Didn't you hear it?" I ask faintly. The three boys share a look.

"Hear what?" Minho asks carefully.

"That screeching sound. It felt like my brain was splitting in half." I say, running my fingers through my long blonde hair.

"What's your name?" Newt asks helping me to my feet.

Struggling to stay up I manage to whisper, "Anna." Before collapsing.

My vision goes dark as the boys shout out in shock.

Then I'm gone.


	2. Chapter 2

I wake up in a room on a bed. Sitting up I look around taking in my surroundings fast. Newt is sitting in a chair besides me, sleeping. It's light outside. The sunlight shines through a makeshift window. I look down at myself. I'm wearing ragged jeans and a black tank top. My feet are bare and I'm filthy. I quickly braid my hair and stand up. As soon as I stand up I have to sit back down.

"Newt." I say softly, feeling a little guilty of waking him up. He jerks his head and opens his eyes.

"Anna. You're awake. Good." He says reaching out but then pulls his hand back remembering my touch me you die rule.

"W-What happened?" I ask faintly.

"You collapsed after the sound thing. You've been out for one night. It's almost dinner here now." He says frowning slightly. Scrunching my eyes together I ask,

"Then why are you here?" He manages a smile.

"I caught you when you fell. And you wouldn't let go of my hand until like three hours ago." I stare at him. I usually never need anyone. I'm a loner. I remember that.

"Oh. Sorry about that. Also, sorry for almost killing you." I mumble.

"Eh. I get it. You were scared and I was right there. Anyways, you feel up to meeting some others?" He asks as I almost stumble standing up.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. Let's go." I take a few steps and trip. He grabs my arm steadying me. "Sorry. I'm not usually this weak." I look Newt in the eye.

"Hey, it's okay. We've all been through this. Well not the sound, but the shock of being here. You deserve to be freaked out. I mean honestly most of the boys who come up here just sit there in shock, vomit a few times, some even pee their pants." He says. I laugh. With a satisfied smile he looks at me. I look away and move forward. He follows. By the time we reach outside I can walk on my own, with very few stumbles.

"We just started our party. It's for the newcomer. You." Newt says leading me to the party.

"That's Gally. He's not that nice." Newt says showing me the place where the boys are wrestling with one another. As we continue walking, the talking stops completely. "Sorry about them. We've haven't seen a girl in a long time." Newt leads me away as they continue to stare.

"Jeez! Go back to your party. I'm a girl. Now you see and you can stop staring." I snap at the silence of the boys. They suddenly go back to what they were doing.

"I was getting the impression that you didn't talk much, but maybe that's wrong?" Newt laughs. I summon a little smile. For some reason I know I haven't smiled in a while.

"I-I need to sit down." I stutter. Newt looks at me with concern. Leading me over to a log we sit down side by side leaning up against it.

"Are you okay? What's wrong?" He asks. I take steadying breaths trying to separate my thoughts.

"Before this I remember I didn't smile. I remember all I did was train and work and fight." I clutch my head as the sound starts again. I can slightly hear Newt talking calmly to me. I calm down again and let myself focus on the moment. "Why does this keep happening to me?" I ask slightly.

"I think you're trying to remember your past but you can't." Newt says handing me a drink. It's an amber liquid.

"What is this?" I ask handing it back to him. Newt takes a swig from it.

"Try it." He smirks. I take a sip. It burns my throat.

"Wonderful." I say sarcastically, pushing it back. He smiles but only slightly. He's looking at me funnily. He's studying me, I realize. "What?" I ask after the silence.

"Nothing." He says continuing to look at me.

"How long has is been exactly since you've seen a girl?" I ask laughing. He shrugs. Suddenly loud shouts come from the wrestling area.

"Who's next? Who wants to take down me? I bet you can't!" Gally taunts. I stand up.

"I'd like to beat him." I mutter. Newt hears me.

"He never loses." Newt points out, standing. Before he can stop me I yell out.

"I'll give it a go." Walking towards Gally he laughs.

"What? You? I can't fight a girl." He laughs again, louder. No one else laughs. They see my look. I can be pretty scary, trust me. Glancing at Newt I see him looking at me, humor in his eyes.

"Are you afraid to lose to a girl, Gally?" I ask innocently. Gally tightens his hands into fists and charges at me. I leap out of the way, dodging right underneath his outstretched hands. He stops before going out of the circle and comes running at me again. He's titled forward. I jump up, push myself off of his back, and do a flip in mid-air, and land on my feet behind Gally. There are awed gasps all around. But Gally falls to the ground, inside the circle. He comes running at me again. This time I don't move. I grab his outstretched arms and twist them pushing him out of the circle. He gets up looking at me in awe.

"Anyone else want to go?" I ask flashing them all a smile. I look at Newt. He's silently laughing. All the other boys cheer as Gally storms off. I walk away from the others and join Newt again.

"Don't know where you learned it all but that was pretty awesome." Newt says offering me some of the liquid.

"I'll pass thanks." He nods taking a sip.

"We should get you a place to sleep. Come on." He says. We're walking back to the room I was in, I can tell. The party is still going on. As we're walking I hear sounds coming from outside of this place.

"What's out there?" I ask. Newt looks away.

"The maze. It's a terrible, horrifying place. Trust me." He says leading me away from it. "Wicked, is an organization that put us here. We're there little lab rats. We have to find a way out of the maze." Newt goes on bitterly. I stop walking.

"What was that first word?" I ask really carefully. Newt looks back at me curiously and a bit concerned.

"Anna?" He asks.

"The first word." I whisper. Newt comes to my side.

"Wicked?" He says. The sound comes back, way more intensely. As I start to register the sound Newt swings me up into his arms and carries me back to the room. The sound goes through my brain as quickly as ever. My head starts spinning and the sound gets louder. As Newt puts me down I collapse to the ground letting out a strangled scream as I hold my ears. All I hear, feel is the pain. Tears start streaming down my cheeks as I sob; the pain is too intense. I can't take it. I can feel Newt pulling me into his chest. He's built strongly, with a lot of muscle. He holds me making shushing sounds. Resting his chin on my head he traces circles onto my arm. I know he's trying to calm me down. But my brain has stopped working. All I can do is process the pain and weep because of it. The sound keeps on coming, I don't know how to stop it or what to do. Trying not to scream again, because of the pain, I bite my lip hard, drawing blood. I'm vaguely aware of Minho and Alby walking into the room, concerned.

"What's wrong with her?" Minho asks crouching by Newt.

"I don't know. She said it's the 'sound' again." Newt says softly.

"Oh. Come find us when she's okay again, all right?" Alby says pulling Minho out of the room. I can feel Newt looking down at me.

"I know it hurts. It's okay to let go and be weak around me. I won't judge you. Just remember that." He whispers into my ear. We sit there for a while as my sobs stop but the sound keeps going. Finally the sound stops leaving my head hurting, but not as much. Newt lets me go as I sit up.

"Are you okay?" He asks helping me up and walking me over to the bed. He sits beside me on the bed. He pushes a stray piece of his windswept blonde hair out of his eyes.

"Yeah. The pain is just so intense." I say not breaking eye contact.

"How so?" He asks in his adorable British accent.

"It feels like a thousand knives are being thrown into my brain. Then it feels like a metal ball is hitting the sides of my skull every second, inside my head. But all that times fifty." I say rubbing the tears off of my face.

"Ouch." Newt winces.

"You should get some rest. I'll come and check on you in the morning. Then we can start your training." He winks at me then leaves the room. Standing up I use the wall to help me get to the window. I can see Newt walking towards the on-going party. I hold onto the window opening as I watch the party from afar. After a while people start walking away and the fire is put out. I try to walk back to my bed. I forget all about my head and how disoriented I am. Taking two steps I fall to the ground. With no energy left to get up I fall asleep on the floor, cold and alone.


	3. Chapter 3

"Anna? Anna." Someone is shaking my shoulders I sit up really fast almost hitting heads with someone but I quickly stop my head.

"What?" I ask realizing its Newt.

"I came in this morning to wake you up and you were on the ground, are you okay?" He asks helping me up.

"Yeah. I'm fine. I fell last night and I guess I didn't get up. But I'm fine." I say. Taking a few careful steps I walk normally knowing I won't trip or anything. Newt walks besides me. We get breakfast and walk out to the gardens around here. He hands me a shovel.

"Get ready to weed. This is what we do all day. I mean I'm a runner but I'm supposed to show you the ropes today." Newt grabs a shovel to. I know what weeding is and I know I hate shovels. Why? I don't know. I try not to focus on that as I get a headache.

"Can I just use my hands?" I ask crouching in the dirt. Newt nods. I kneel in the soft dirt and start pulling out weeds. Newt kneels next to me, weeding as well, all though he uses a shovel.

"Newt, what's out in the Maze? Why can't I go out there? Why are we here?" I ask breaking the silence.

"We don't know why we're here. We just know we have to solve the Maze to get out. You can't go out there because you're not a runner. Only runners go out there, it's for your own safety." Newt pauses. I can tell he doesn't want to go on. "And the Grievers are out there. No one survives a night in the Maze. Grievers are dangerous monsters. We've never really seen one full force before but we do know no one survives them." With that happy note he changes the subject.

"We should find you a job. What do you like to do?" Newt asks. What do I like to do? I get to choose what I want to do? I get to pick?

"Ugh!" I bend over putting my head on my knees.

"Anna!" Newt sits me up and places his hands on my shoulders. He's looking at me.

"I don't understand why this is happening but I don't like it. You're in pain and it's not okay." He pauses. The pain starts to go away. "We need to figure out why this is happening. I'm going to help you, don't worry. It will be okay." He finishes. The pain goes away. I rub my head.

"Thanks. The pain is gone." I say. He nods. Looking up across the Glade I see Newt watch Alby walk across the field.

"I need to talk to Alby. I'll be right back." Newt says standing up. I watch him run over to Alby. I can see them talking, but I can't hear them so I go back to weeding. I'm almost done with one row when Newt comes back. He kneels down besides me again and starts helping.

"If you want we can try to figure out why you get these headaches...?" Newt asks cautiously. I hesitate. I know this will involve a lot of pain but I mean it's a chance.

"Okay." I say quietly. "Whenever your ready." I say tightening my hands around the root I'm holding. Newt studies me. I can see that out of the corner of my eye.

"Okay. Your free here." Newt says looking at me. He stops weeding. My hands tighten. I'm not free. They always told me I was never free. Who are they? Wait. Was I a captive? I double over in pain a single image going through my mind.

 _Two men are pulling me away in black suits. "No!" I scream looking at a boy in front of me. He's being pulled away from me to, in the opposite direction. "Anna! Let me go." The voice yells sounding familiar. I struggle against my captives and shout one more thing I can't hear before I can't take it anymore._

The pain pushes all thoughts away from me.

"Anna..." A soft voice breaks through. The pain starts to fade. I'm in a garden; Newt is holding my arms steady. I sit up facing him.

"You said something. You said no and then you said wait, let me say goodbye. Any idea what that means?" Newt goes back to weeding. I follow suit.

"I've no idea. I only remember yelling no." I say. Newt nods lost in thought.

"Let's try again?" I ask after a couple of minutes. Newt looks uneasy.

"Are you sure? You looked like you were in a lot of pain." He says wiping his hands on his cargo pants. I nod, pushing all tears out of my eyes.

"Okay." Newt sticks his tongue out slightly and knits his eyebrows together, frowning slightly. I can't help think he looks cute.

"No breaks." He finally decides. Nothing clicks right away. Then a quick image goes through my sight.

 _I'm fighting with a masked person. He's kicking me in the stomach, telling me to get up. Someone from the side of the room, someone I can't see yells, "You have to stay in the ring until you beat him. Get up!" I slowly get to my feet and stagger towards the masked man. Falling down in pain I yell out, "I think my ribs are broken! Just five minutes, please. Don't make me fight again!" I'm kicked in the side again. "Keep going!" The man off to the side yells._

I'm back in the Glade clutching my head, leaning onto my knees.

"Agh, make it stop!" I clench my teeth, gritting them so hard I'm sure they'll break. Newt undoes my hair slowly, letting me focus on that instead of the pain. Every time his fingers graze my back I can feel a little shiver, a good shiver, run down my spine. Pieces of my hair fall into my face. It touches the ground. I didn't realize it was so long.

"Wow. You have really long hair!" Newt says helping me up. I chuckle. "Want to talk about that one?" Newt says eyeing my clenched fists.

"I remembered. I was taken from someone important to me and I was put in a training place with only me in it. I had to fight my way out of every obstacle if I wanted to survive." I say sadly. "But I can't remember who the important person is or what my life was like before that. I don't remember the outside world or anything like that." I wince remembering the pain. Newt nods.

"You were saying something. Something like you thought your ribs were broken and you didn't want to fight anymore?" He asks. I shudder.

"Yeah. They made me keep fighting. I remember that time. I was broken, bloody and bruised when five hours after fighting I finally got my component out of the ring by tripping him. They wouldn't let me stop. I had to keep fighting." I say darkly. I don't want to remember this. Newt stops weeding and looks at the ground darkly. I study him. He can look pretty scary when he wants to.

"Well now we know something of your past. Not a pretty one but at least we know." Newt says trying to lighten the mood. I smile slightly, just to be nice. We work side by side for the rest of the day, Newt telling me about the Glade. I'm laughing most of the day. Newt is too.

 _pause_

After dinner we're walking to the bonfire place where they set up the fire again. The runners are back and are hanging out with everyone. The maze doors aren't closed yet. Newt told me they closed at night and opened at dawn. We were sitting side by side against a log enjoying the sounds of the others partying. I'm deep in thought when the memory comes to me. Suddenly I turn to him.

"What is it?" He asks concerned.

"It was you." I whisper my pulse quickening. It was him. I'm sure of it. He was there. I didn't want to leave him.

"Anna, what was me? What's going on?" Newt puts a hand on my shoulder. I look at him squarely in the eye.

"You were the one I was trying to get back to." I say my shock building inside me. Newt stares at me in confusion then in realization.

"I was the one calling out to you when they were taking you away?" He asks his eyes grasping at the concept.

"I remember now. They took me from somewhere and you had run after me. Then we got away from them and kept running but more of them kept coming. You were grabbed and taken away from me...that was the last time I saw you before you were taken" I say slumping against the log.

"I knew you before the Maze." Newt whispers. I smile into the darkness, finally figuring it out. I start laughing. Newt looks at me like I'm insane.

"Why are you laughing?" He asks cracking a smile. My laughter is contagious.

"I don't know. It's just I'm happy. I figured it out. I finally figured it out." I say doubling over laughing harder. Newt starts laughing too. We end up sitting there for like ten minutes just laughing. Finally I manage to stop laughing. Newt turns to me, his laughter stopping to.

"Well miss Anna, I must say I haven't seen you in a while." He says. I roll my eyes at him.

"You don't even remember that." I complain. He winks at me.

"Let's go mingle. It's time you meet some new people. What do you say?" Newt stands up, offering me a hand. I glance at him. "I thought I'd try my chances." He smiles cockily. I grab it and he pulls me up. Sticking my tongue out at him I walk around observing everyone.

"Let's go say hi to Minho." I say grabbing Newt's arm pulling him with me. The rest of the night I meet everyone and talk with him.

They all know I'm a nice, full of laughter kind of person.


	4. Chapter 4

NEWT-

I watch her talking to everyone. She laughs and smiles so freely. I can't believe that she knew my before this. Did she know everyone? This is confusing but I'm glad she knew me. She's talking to Frypan about cooking. They laugh. I can't help but think she has a pretty laugh. Her dirty blonde hair is in a long braid down her shoulder; she redid it after I took it out. She has beautiful blue eyes that turn a grey color when she's angry. She has a little nose and her eyebrows are slim but cute when she's thinking, frowning, or amused. She's so kind hearted and easy going. I'm afraid this Maze will destroy that. Or maybe she'll bring lightness to this dreary place. I mean everyone loves her. And she doesn't even mind when the boys put their arms around her or hug her. She hangs on them sometimes, too. It's odd seeing her from being very protective and closed to being so happy and friendly.

"Newt? You okay?" Alby appears at my side. I turn to him my arms crossed.

"Just observing." I say turning back to Anna.

"She get's along with everyone. I saw her laughing with Gally a few minutes ago." Alby chuckles. Yeah, I saw that to. I've followed her around making sure she's okay. We stand there for a bit watching her converse with some boys. She notices us staring and walks over to us.

"What are you doing just standing there? This is a party is it not? Come on!" She grabs our hands and brings us into the conversation. We laughed and laughed, literally talking about everything.

"What do you guys do for fun?" She asks. A few minutes ago she got every Glader to sit and talk with us, laughing and talking. We've never done this before but it's nice.

"Fight in the ring?" Someone suggests. I can see Anna hiding her shudder. No one else noticed it but I did.

"That's it! Come on don't you have music or dancing?" She waves her arms around. Everyone shakes his head. I remember music but here it's all work not a lot of play. She jumps up and pushes through the crowd. She runs to the Homestead. She comes back with some wooden spoons and metal pots.

"Hope you don't mind." She says to Frypan. He shrugs and Anna continues. She grabs some cloth and makes a bag and puts metal poles in it. Then she grabs Frypan and Winston.

"Okay Frypan make a beat." She says showing him her beat. Frypan picks it up.

"Winston, shake this to the sound of Frypan's beat but not to hard." Anna shows him what she means. Then there's a beat.

"Now we dance!" She grabs Minho's hand.

"It's not that hard, move to the beat like me!" She shakes her hips and puts her hands in the air. Then she spins around. Minho tries and fails. He tucks his arms in and does a little twirl.

"Come on everybody try a little harder!" She gets everybody up. Then she grabs the cups around the fireplace and bangs on them with a stick creating a really sweet beat. Everyone dances except Frypan, Winston, Anna, and me. I sit by Anna and help her make music.

"That's it Newt! It sounds amazing!" She says in my ear. I smile at her. This is the most fun we've had in a very long time. Everybody eventually gets tired and heads off to bed.

"When I said meet some people, I didn't mean everybody!" I tease Anna as we make our way inside the Homestead where everyone sleeps. I find her a sleeping bag near a window and set mine up beside hers. Minho set's his up beside mine and Alby's besides Minho's. Everyone sets up his sleeping bag. I know no one is asleep and I can tell Alby knows too.

"Why isn't anyone asleep?" He asks into the darkness. A bunch of people reply; too hyper, too excited, uncomfortable, and many other reasons. Anna sits up as everyone starts talking.

"Another type of music is singing." She starts and everyone falls silent.

"At night you sing lullabies but I don't remember any so I'll just make one up." She takes in a huge breath of air and starts signing. She sings softly and talks about the nighttime moon. Her words echo through the room, as everybody is silent. Her voice is soft and sweet. It feels like a soft summer breeze. She ends her song and I can tell many people are asleep. She gets up and walks around. I prop my head up so I can see her. She's pulling blankets up on people, adjusting pillows, and pulling some people away from others, so we're not crowded. When she gets back she stops above Alby. He's asleep. She gently pulls up his blanket to his chin and smiles. I watch her sit down besides me.

"Who knew you could sing?" I say covering her up with a blanket.

"Could've sounded like a toad." She mutters before falling asleep her face towards me.

"Good night Anna. Sleep well." I say lying down next to her.

"Thank you Newt." She mumbles.

I fall asleep as soon as my head touches the pillow.


	5. Chapter 5

**Hi guys! I hope you like this story! I'm wondering what I'm going to write next for this... Do you think I should make Anna a runner or a medjack? Oh and Newt doesn't have his limp because 'that event' hasn't happened... all though I am wondering if I should put that in here, what do you think? Thanks- GraceKerr-author4life**

The next morning we are awakened by Alby. "Come on! New day! Let's get up!" He shouts. I sit up and nudge Anna. She sits up. Everybody puts his sleeping bag and pillows away. Anna follows me.

"I'll be right back." She says as we all head down to breakfast. I see her go off into the woods. I'm about to follow her when Minho appears at my side.

"Let her go. She'll be back." We walk into the mess hall. As we all get our food and start eating Anna walks through the door. All eyes are on her and what she's doing. She's brushing her long hair out with a makeshift comb. None of us comb our hair anymore; we don't have time for it.

"What?" She says looking at everybody.

"Why are you doing that?" A boy asks from the back of the room.

"Brushing out my hair? It keeps your hair cleaner." She says matter-of-factly. "Don't tell me you guys don't brush your hair?" She asks pulling the comb out of her hair. We all shake our heads.

"Okay, that's it. After breakfast before you walk out of here I'm going to brush your hair. I will not take no for an answer." She says putting her hands on her hips. Many boys get up and go over to her. She brushes out people's hair, one after another. Soon the only boys left are Minho, Alby, and I. Anna brushes out Minho's hair and spikes it up at the front.

"What are you doing?" He asks trying to look at his hair.

"Making it neat. Don't worry, I'm leaving the spikes." She says. "And there you go. Have a good run and be safe." She tells him. Minho kisses her cheek and runs off to join the other runners. Anna and Alby look at one another.

"Alby, can I talk to you later?" Anna breaks the uneasy silence. Alby nods and runs off.

"Guess that leaves me." I say shuffling over to her. She laughs and makes me sit down on a bench at the table. She starts brushing my hair from the back.

"What are you going to talk to Alby about?" I ask.

"I want to know if I can you know be someone who watches out for everyone here. I mean you all don't remember having someone care for you, right? If I can do that maybe I could help you guys be happier. And you all won't be complete pigs!" She says sighing heavily, then chuckling. Putting down her comb on the table she puts her arms around my neck. I lean against her putting my head on her shoulder.

"Newt, what if he says no?" She asks me in a quiet voice. She's changed in these few days. Going from the scared, scary girl to this nice, caring person.

"Alby's pretty reasonable. You'll be taking some of his work off of his shoulders. He's not the most openly kind guy so if you could do that, I bet he'd appreciate that." I say trying to ignore how right it feels to be in her arms. I can feel Anna nodding.

"I won't be taking your place right?" She asks a little guilt in her voice.

"Nah. It's okay anyways, I think you could do more then I could." I say smiling at her. She looks down at me and smiles.

"Well I should go ask him and you should go running." She says kissing my temple. I sit up and watch her run across the Glade to where Alby stands. I get up and walk slowly to the Maze doors. Grabbing a backpack I glance one last time at Anna and Alby. Anna is putting her hand on his arm. A big improvement for Alby, he doesn't like the touchy-feely kind of things. I can see Alby nod. They go off walking and talking. I'm hoping Anna got her job. I set off to the Maze. It's about dinner when Minho, the other runners, and I come back. Minho comes over to me as I catch my breath.

"What's wrong?" I say standing up. He coughs into his fist and tells me nothing changed in the maze, nothing at all.

"Nothing happened in my section. None of the walls changed." I say standing up my breath back. Suddenly I feel someone jumping on my back. Staggering, I instantly loop my hands under her thighs. She laughs.

"Anna!" I say surprised.

"Hey Newt, Minho. How was running? You guys are all sweaty." She says hanging onto me.

"Well, we were running!" Minho runs over to the map room.

"Yo, Newt. You can stay. The others can to. Nothing happened!" Minho disappears into the map room. "

Hey, what did Alby say?" I ask. I start walking towards the stream so I can clean my face.

"He said yes! I'm like a...like a..." She looks for the right word. "A mother hen?" I suggest.

"I am not a mother hen! I'm not a mother figure! Just a caregiver I guess." She says as I put her down.

Splashing water on my face I state, "Well, I'm pretty sure a lot of boys here think you're like their mother." I glance at her. She looks a little crest-fallen.

"How do you see me?" She asks looking away. I brush water onto my arms and stomach.

"I think you're my friend," What I want to say is maybe a little more one day. I let the comment hang in the air as if saying 'or something more'. She nods. The dinner bell sounds. I stand up. Anna jumps on my back and we run to the mess hall. She laughs the whole way. I do to.

"Don't fall!" She shrieks as we come to a stop in the doorway. I let her down and we all sit down to eat. Minho, Alby, Anna, and I sit down nearest to the door. We eat, laugh, talk, and have fun. At the end of dinner we all go off to bed, it's too early to go to bed but we're all exhausted. No one wants to go to sleep, though.

"All right you guys. New announcement." Alby and I stand up. I wink at Anna as Alby keeps talking.

"Anna is going to be checking in with you all everyday, making sure everything is going well, and she'll be helping new greenies come into the maze. She'll be like a..." Alby glances at me.

"Either a mother hen or a therapist." I say smirking in Anna's direction. She shoots daggers at me.

"If you need something big come to me, something little go to Newt, something physical go to the Medjacks, and if you need something mental go to Anna." Alby says. Everyone starts talking at once. Then we all lapse into bored silence.

"What now? I'm not tired." A few boys mumble. Anna is next to me resting her head in her hands.

"Everything okay?" I ask sitting besides her, our thighs touching.

"Yeah, just a bit sleepy. I don't know why though." She leans her head onto my shoulder.

"Anna, do you remember any stories or have any stories? You know like your song last night?" Someone asks quietly from the back. Anna's head shoots up.

"Yeah. Tell us a story or sing a song." A few other boys chorus in. Anna looks at me. I'm about to speak up when she calls for quiet.

"Okay. Sit down in your sleeping bags and gather around. I'm going to tell you a story of the haunted island." She moves in front of me and leans against my chest. I put my arms around her as she starts talking. She tells us all about these seven boys stranded on an island. A monster is chasing them and killing them off one by one.

"As the last boy stood in the dark, alone, the monster attacked him from behind. Screaming he took his last breath. Ah! He died and the monster lived on his island haunting whoever came near for the rest of its life." She finishes the story making everybody jump. We all jump when she screamed. Then laughed as she ended the story.

"It's time for bed now." She says happily. Starting to sing we all get to our places and drift to sleep. Anna falls asleep at the end of the song and sleeps on my chest.

I fall asleep enjoying her warmth.


	6. Chapter 6

It's about the middle of the night when I wake up due to the shaking girl in my arms. She's literally shaking, shuddering, shivering. I sit up straight and pull her into my arms. Her face is beaded with sweat. Her hands are freezing but her forehead is burning up. I gather her blanket around her and make shushing noises as she mumbles something in her sleep.

"You can't hurt him!" She says her arms swinging around. I grab her arms and pin them to her side.

"Anna. It's just a dream. It's okay. Wake up." I say a fist around my heart closing tightly.

She stays calm for a bit before mumbling, "Don't take him! Not him! Bring him back!" She starts to shiver. I pull off my blanket and place it on her. Suddenly her eyes pop open. She sits up wild-eyed.

"Anna, it's okay. You're safe." I say rubbing her shoulder. She gets swiftly to her feet. Walking around everybody she makes it to the door. I follow her. What is she doing? I find her walking across the Glade towards the doors. Why is she going there?

"Anna!" I say into the air. It's so quiet I know she can hear me, but she keeps walking. I run up to her, using all of my speed. I need to know what's going on. I grab her shoulders spinning her around. She doesn't look me in the eye like she always does, that's when I realize she's sleepwalking.

"Anna, wake up. You need to wake up." I shake her shoulders lightly.

"I need to go after him! Where have you taken him? Bring him back!" She says forcefully. After taking off in a run towards the tree line she stops like she's in front of a window.

"Newt!" She yells out. I know she's dreaming but it's still shocking. I get to her side as she crumples to the ground.

"Anna..." I whisper. Her eyes shoot open and find mine.

"W-Why are we outside?" She whispers.

"Y-You had a dream and then you were sleep walking." I say helping her to her feet. She looks at me in sudden panic.

"I dreamed they were taking you away, they were taking you into the Maze. I-I tried to reach you but I couldn't. I was a prisoner." She says tears filling her eyes. I pull her into my embrace. She hugs my waist as I run my hands down her hair, flattening it. It's soft and silky. "

I'm here and I'm not leaving. You're safe. I will never let anything happen to you." I whisper. She nods into my shoulder. We stand there for a bit, in the dark holding each other. She pulls away holding my arms.

"Please don't leave again..." She says softly, her eyes boring into mine.

"I won't." I say.

"Promise?" I can sense her fear. Do I mean that much to her?

"Promise." I say kissing her forehead. We walk back to the homestead. It's still the middle of the night, so everyone is still asleep.

"Thank you." Anna mutters as we walk around the people. I sit down leaning against the wall. Anna sits down between my legs and leans against me. She leans her head on my shoulder and I lean my head on her head. I wrap my arms around her.

"Good night Newt." She kisses my chin.

"Sleep well." I say to her even breaths.


	7. Chapter 7

I woke up before everyone else. Anna is still sleeping on my shoulder. She looks so peaceful. I try not to wake her as I shift my position. But of course that doesn't work. She slowly opens her eyes and glances at me.

"Everything okay?" She turns to look me in the eye, her hands resting on my wrists.

"Yeah, just woke up early." I say brushing a stray piece of her hair out of her eyes. We sit together waiting for everyone to wake up. Soon we're all leaving the homestead to go off to our jobs. I grab my backpack and walk out with Minho to the doors. Anna comes running over to the entire group of runners.

"Be safe you guys!" She calls to the others. They nod and with Minho's go ahead run into the Maze.

"Be careful you two." Anna says giving Minho a hug, then me a hug. Minho runs into the Maze. I kiss Anna's forehead.

"No reason to worry about us, love." I call running into the Maze. I turn back to see her watching us. Going around the next corner I lose sight of her all together. I run through my section of the Maze making sure to note any changes and document my routes. I run until the sun is high in the sky, signaling lunch. I pull out my lunch and eat quickly. I realize there is a note in my backpack.

 _Stay safe. When you come back find me. I need to talk to you about my visions. I also think its time to tell Minho and Alby about them._

Anna signed it. Okay, so I'll just meet up with her later. I'm wondering if she had any more dreams. Has she not told me them all? I get up and start running. I turn back when I get to my respected spot. This spot never changes, pity. I run back not even thinking about where I'm going, just following the route of everyday. I reach the main path just as Minho does. I tell him we should find Anna, that she has something to tell us.

"And Alby. Let's find Alby. She wanted to tell us all." I say. He nods. As we reach the doors I can tell Minho is looking for Anna. I am to of course. She always greets us back. We spot Alby and go tell him we have to meet Anna.

As the other runners come back I hear Ben ask, "Where's Anna? She always meets us back." The others shrug. I scan the Glade looking for a certain blonde haired girl. It shouldn't be that hard; she's the only girl.

"Where could she be?" I ask looking everywhere. We go into each section of the Glade asking if anyone's seen her.

"It's okay. She's probably fine. Let's check the forest." Minho tries to reassure me but I can see his panic growing just like mine. We call out her name as we run through the trees. We reach the darkest part of the Glade, the far corner of the walls. Anna is on the ground shivering, eyes closed.

"Anna!" I call out running to her side. She's as cold as ice and her breathing is shallow. Her pulse is very fast.

"What happened?" Alby asks as Minho runs over. We turn her over. She doesn't look to be physically hurt.

"Newt...?" She mutters. I barely hear her she's so quiet.

"Anna, what happened? Talk to me. Are you okay?" I ask pulling her into my lap. Minho takes her hand, mouthing to me.

"Cold as ice." He puts his other hand on her forehead, mouthing to me.

"Fever." I nod.

"We should bring her to the Medjacks." Alby suggests.

"N-no. I'm f-fine." Anna stutters. She sits up leaning against me. I can tell she has no strength and all her weight is against me.

"What happened? What's wrong?" I ask, worry building inside me. She nods.

"Guys, I've been having dreams or flashbacks of my memories before this. None of the world or authority figures but of us, all of us in the Glade." She says struggling to keep her eyes open. Minho and Alby gasp. Alby finally kneels down in front of her.

"Will you tell us them?" He asks. Anna nods. She opens her mouth to speak but she's so quite we can barely hear her.

"We should let her rest. Let's get her to a bed, a real bed." I say scooping her up into my arms. She's so light. It makes me wonder if she's eating enough. I hardly ever see her eat. I carry her back to the room she was first in, followed by Minho and Alby. Minho follows me into the room while Alby stays outside. I place Anna on the bed and Minho pulls the blankets over her. I brush the hair from her forehead. Minho and I share a look and head outside.

"Did you know of these memories?" Alby asks me. I nod.

"But I only know a few, and I barely understand them." Alby nods.

"When she's better we'll talk to her, together." Alby says looking at me then Minho. We nod and he runs off.

"Think she'll be okay?" Minho turns to me.

"Yeah, I hope so. Someone should stay with her." I say. He nods.

"Both of us." He says leading me into her room. I sit in the chair besides her and Minho sits on the window ledge. We watch her as she struggles with her nightmares in her sleep. She's tossing and turning all night long. Minho goes to check on everybody else while I stay with Anna.

Eventually I fall asleep in the chair.


	8. Chapter 8

I wake up to yelling. Anna is screaming at the top of her lungs. I almost fall out of my chair I'm so startled. I run to her side. She sits up really fast, her eyes wide in shock. She's breathing heavily. I don't think she notices me. Looking around she spots me.

"Newt...?" She asks her eyes crumbling.

"I'm here. What's wrong?" I go to her side wrapping her in a hug.

"I-I can't take it anymore. I don't want the memories." She says putting her head in her hands. I don't know what to say.

"Please make it stop. Take them back. Take them back." She cries her face revealing a tortured pain.

"Anna, I don't know how I would do that. But I promise you that you aren't alone. I'm here for you. I will help you get through this." I say pulling her into my chest. She's shaking. Tears are running down her cheeks and landing on my shoulder.

"Thanks Newt." She says hugging me tighter. I sit against the wall and she rests her head on my stomach and her arm around my waist.

"I need to talk to you about my memories." She says sitting up.

"Do you want me to get Alby and Minho?" I ask sitting up to. She nods her eyes looking a little misty. I get up and go to find Alby and Minho. Minho is getting ready to go out running.

"Newt! There you are! It's time to go into the Maze." Minho says as soon as he sees me.

"We can't go into the Maze today. Anna needs to tell us about her memories." I say. Minho nods. I lead them back to the room where she is. Anna is at the window watching the other runners go into the Maze.

"Anna?" Minho sits on the bed. Alby leans on the door. I sit in the chair I sat in last night.

"Okay. I remember. I mean, I don't remember any of the outside world or the authority people or the places around there. But I remember certain things and people." She starts looking away from us. "I remember all of you, all of the Gladers. We lived in a warehouse with different rooms surrounding a dining hall and a living room thing. In the rooms all the Gladers here plus a lot of others that aren't here lived there." She starts closing her eyes. I stand up and go to her side.

"Is this hurting your head?" I say softly. She nods scrunching up her eyes.

"Take your time, we'll wait." Minho says quietly. Anna is quiet for a bit before speaking again. She sits down on the ground her back against the wall.

"We were all friends. We lived there. The authority people would take us away to do tests and then if we passed we would be put in trials. But the trials didn't start until two years ago. I watched so many of my friends leave me. I was closest to Newt, Minho, and a girl you don't know." Anna says putting her head in her hands.

"Wait. There were other girls?" Alby asks impatiently. Anna nods. "

Do you need a break?" I sit besides her. She nods. I can see the tears falling down her cheeks. I look at Alby and Minho. They get the message and leave the room. Well Minho gets the message and pulls Alby out of the room. Anna gets up and walks over to the door and leans against it.

"Newt...I was alone in the end. You all left me and I'm afraid that will happen again." She closes her eyes. I walk over to her and wipe the tears from her face.

"Nothing will make me leave you again. Nothing." I say giving her a hug. She rests her arms around my neck and pulls back. I'm still holding her waist as we touch foreheads.

"Can we just sit for a while?" Anna asks softly. I nod.


	9. Chapter 9

A little while later there is a knock on the door.

"Anna, are you ready to talk again?" Alby says from the other side of the room. Anna nods to me and gets up from the bed. We had been lying there for the past few minutes. I get up and open the door.

"She's ready." I say as Minho and Alby take their positions.

"Whenever your ready, darling." Minho says brushing her arm with his hand and taking a seat on the bed.

"We were all a bit younger. Our memories were all wiped before we got to the warehouse. So, we made new memories." Anna starts after taking a steadying breath.

"Everybody knew everybody. We were a big family. The rooms housed four people. Newt, Gally, Minho, and Alby were in one together, that's where you guys were." She says talking to the wall in front of her.

"I was in a room next to you with three other girls. We were all really close. One day we all went to breakfast and Alby wasn't with you. We searched the entire warehouse but he wasn't anywhere." Anna chokes on her own words.

"Day after day our friends disappeared. They all passed the test so they had to go into the trials, the Mazes." Anna stops for a moment catching her breath and trying to control the coming tears I see in her breaking eyes.

"I was alone in my room and in your guys room it was Newt and Minho. The rooms around us were slowly emptying out. After a few weeks when we went to breakfast there were only a few, most from this Maze. Minho was taken and that's when we all started to fear for what would happen to us." Anna turns around and walks over to me. I'm sitting in the only chair in the room. She places a hand on my shoulder.

"Then he was taken. I heard him shouting in his room and woke up. I went to see what the panic was about. I grabbed his hand and we ran for the exit, for hiding places. But I was caught and taken away to another warehouse where I had to learn to fight. Day after day I saw familiar faces pass by me while I fought for my life." She pauses squeezing my shoulder harder.

"It was the last straw when I had been fighting for at least five hours and then just as I won I saw Newt being taken. I knew he was going to the Maze. He was fighting. Every single one of you fought as you were taken away. And I couldn't help you. I remember running to the window and screaming. The people fighting me day and night tried to take me away before Newt saw me. But he did. That's where we said goodbye, both of us screaming and trying to get away." She takes a deep breath.

"After the last of you all left, I was put back in our warehouse. Alone. When I was taken I saw people in black costumes bring in a bunch of new kids, looking happy. I knew that the same exact thing would happen to them. Then I showed up here, after fighting really hard." She finishes. Her shoulder slump and she looks at the ground.

"That's why you were so bruised when you got here." Minho comments.

"That's all you have to say? We just found out our story and you comment on her being bruised?" Alby turns towards him. Minho and Alby start fighting. I jump in trying to stop them. Anna's head shoots up.

"Enough!" She yells over us. We all look at her. "I know this is hard to take in. But you will _not_ be fighting while I'm the only one who remembers any of this. So enough." She says her voice close to yelling. Alby walks out of the room slamming the door. Minho just sits there looking lost.

"I'm going to take a walk, if you need me." He says looking at me. I nod.

"I'm sorry you had to go through all that and then remember it." He gives Anna a hug. She nods. I watch him leave and sit in silence. Anna sits on the bed and looks at me.

"You told me you loved me." She says out of the blue. I look at her, shock written all over my face.

"When?" I ask getting my composure back.

"When you were being taken away I had broken away and so had you. We reached each other. Before we were pulled away again, you gave me a hug and whispered in my ear that you loved me." She says tears piling into her eyes. "And I didn't get to say it back." She breaks down in tears. Before I can go to her she jumps up and runs out of the room. I watch her through the window. She's going to the corner of the Maze in the forest. I run after her. Stopping I realize I don't know what I'd say. Does she still love me? Do I love her? I don't think I even know what love is. I definitely care about her. I run towards her dismissing all of my questions. She's curled into a ball crying her eyes out. I get to her and hug her. She looks up after she's stopped crying. I sit against the wall. She looks at me and sits on my lap facing me. I wipe the tears away from her cheeks.

"Hey...it will be all right, love." I say softly. She nods. I drop my hands away crossing them over my chest. She reaches out attentively and touches my cheek. Brushing her hand up to my eye I can tell she's going over my scar. I got it after a week of being in the Glade. Her eyebrows knit together and I know she's thinking. But what is she thinking? I want to know what's going through her head right now. She drags her hands down to my arms and glides her hands over them. I can't help but think that this is how it's supposed to be. She grabs my hands and examines them, looking at all my scrapes and callouses. She pulls her hands away looking at the ground sadly.

"What is it?" I ask knowing her all to well, even though it's been only five days or so. She hesitates.

"Why are we here?" She asks sadness and confusion filling her words. I want to give an actual reason. But my reason will be anger filled and bitter. I don't want to make her feel worse. I put my hand on her cheek turning her head towards me.

"I don't know why. But I want to say, for the record, that being here with you is way better then being here without you." I pause. "Way more fun too." I wink at her. She manages a weak laugh, leaning into my hand. She shifts so she's leaning on me facing the trees. A few hours of sitting and talking we get ready to go to dinner.

We eat and go to bed.


	10. Chapter 10

**ANNA**

It's morning. I wake up to see Newt on the ground facing me. He looks so peaceful. I wish I didn't have to wake up before everyone else. But the truth is I haven't slept much. I sleep like three hours a night. I can't go to sleep or nightmares, past memories, haunt me making me wake up. I hate these memories. They are all so depressing. I shift so I'm leaning on my hand, watching Newt sleep. I hear shuffling close to me. Sitting up I see Alby get up. He nods to me and starts shouting. Everybody gets up. Newt pops up his head almost slamming into mine.

"Whoa! You okay?" I ask holding his shoulders steady. He nods. We get everything in order and go down to breakfast. I really like my new job of 'caretaker'. I brush all the guys hair avoiding breakfast. Coming around to Newt he offers me a piece of bread.

"No thanks." I say brushing out his beautiful hair. Everyone goes to his job. I run up to Minho and Newt before they go out into the Maze. I was hoping to sneak up on Minho but he turns just as I'm about to jump on his back. He catches me and twirls me around. I place my hands on his shoulder shrieking happily.

"Minho! Put me down!" He drops me to the ground. I kiss his cheek and tell him to be safe.

"Be safe, Newt. And I swear if you don't come back I will hurt you." I say teasingly. He laughs and kisses my forehead. I watch them go, feeling a little sad. I don't want them to go. I go around checking on everybody, making sure they are all right. I run right into Alby as I finished making my rounds. "

Anna!" He says stopping.

"Sorry Alby. Hey! Is there anything else I can do?" I ask him. He shakes his head and runs off. Shrugging I go into the little forest and pick the tallest tree in the Glade. I climb the tree and lounge on it. The branches are perfect size to sit on. I lean up against the tree, high off the ground. I drift off to sleep just as midday hits. My dreams are filled with my training scenes. I wake up to an immense pain. I realize with a jolt that I'm falling. I try to grab a branch to stop my fall. I get cuts and probably several bruises as I fall. I don't scream, knowing better then to do that. I land on the hard ground on my back. Groaning I sit up. I gasp as I feel the pain on my stomach. Lifting my shirt I see a deep gouge right above my bellybutton.

"Crap." I say struggling to control my breathing. I get up with much difficulty and sneak into the Medjacks place. They are out, lounging around somewhere. I quickly clean my gouge and bandage it, tightly. I check myself over for other cuts. I see a few that I can easily cover up with a long sleeve shirt. I run to the Homestead where we have all types of clothing. I go to my section and grab a long sleeve shirt I made. The second night I was here I made myself some clothing that would fit me. I change into the shirt looking around to see if there are any boys around. Boys will be boys. Wincing I pull the shirt over my head. I check to see if any of my scrapes are visible. I don't want anyone to know I fell; I can't look weak, especially not in front of all these boys. By the time I'm done I walk out to the Maze doors trying not to limp. My bare feet cling to the grass with every step. I wait at the Maze doors. The other runners come running through.

"Hey you guys! Good run?" I greet them with a friendly smile. They nod, giving me smiles. I wait a little longer knowing that Newt and Minho go the farthest. They come running through a few minutes later. I can see them panting heavily. I go up to them and crouch so I can see their faces.

"Tough day?" I ask concern pouring through my words. They nod. I stand up rubbing their backs. After a few minutes they stand up again.

"Want to talk about it?" I ask as Minho runs to the map room. Newt looks at me with a smile.

"Nah. It was just a lot of running. We stayed out a little longer today and didn't want anyone to worry if we weren't back on time." He says placing an arm around my waist. I control the gasp of pain that almost passes through my lips.

"What is it?" Newt asks, releasing me and facing me his hands on my forearms. He must have seen my face.

"Nothing. Just stepped on a sharp rock." I lie. I hate lying to him but I've been taught certain things that I can't go against. He nods, chuckling.

"Then maybe, love, you should wear shoes." I laugh. We go to dinner. After dinner someone suggests we should dance. I happily agree. I get out the instruments we 'made' and set them up. I sit at the cups. Newt sits with me.

"Oh no. Not this time. Go dance!" I say pushing him up. He stands in front of me does a twirl and sits back down.

"You said dance." He says as I roll my eyes. We sit there starting the music as everyone gets up and dances. After a while boys start going to the Homestead for bed. A few of us keep sitting by the fire enjoying the little melody I'm playing on the glass jars I found in the Homestead. Soon it's just Minho, Newt, and me again. Just like old times. I stop playing and sit between them, leaning against a log. They smile at me.

"Anna?" Minho breaks the silence.

"Yeah?" I ask turning my head towards him.

"Do you remember our families?" Minho says quietly continuing to stare at the fire. Sadness fills my eyes.

"No." I say softly looking at the fire too. Suddenly a pound of rage flies through my system. I throw a rock into the fire.

"What's the use of these memories if they don't give us something to hope for or something that really matters?" I say loudly. Minho and Newt look startled by my outburst. I pick up another rock and get ready to throw it. I stretch my stomach to far as I stretch up. Dropping the rock I give a painful yelp.

"Are you okay?" Newt looks at me concerned. I nod my head pushing all the tears out of my eyes.

"No. She's not!" Minho says pointing at my stomach. Blood is seeping through my shirt and my bandage.

"Anna!" Newt sits up alarmed. "Get the Medjacks!" He yells as Minho takes off running.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Newt asks making me lie down on the ground. I don't protest. I'm finally feeling the effect of the gouge and loss of blood. He pulls up my shirt to my bra line. Seeing the bandage his face becomes angry.

"What happened? Why didn't you tell us about this?" He says starting to unwrap the heavily applied bandages. When he sees the actual wound his face goes white. I can tell he's trying to say something but can't, too angry I'd guess.

"I-I'm sorry. Didn't w-want to l-look weak... Besides, n-not allowed t-to." I say sadly. Well that didn't work.

"You're the strongest person I know! Why would you care about that?" He asks then realization comes to his face.

"Oh...the training facility?" He asks connecting the dots. I nod. I wasn't allowed to look weak and if I had an injury I had to take care of it myself. Minho and the Medjacks reach my side with their medical bag. They push Minho and Newt out of the way. Minho looks at the gouge and gasps.

"What. Happened?" He says deathly calm. Newt's about to answer when the Medjacks cut him off. "

This is worse then it looks. It's going to hurt. Don't panic when you go unconscious." Jeff, the Keeper of the Medjacks says sternly. I try to nod and ignore the pain of what they're doing to me. I feel a tight pinch and yell out.

My last vision is of Newt's face with a few tears rolling down his cheeks as I black out.


	11. Chapter 11

I wake up a little while later to talking. I'm still on the ground and it's still dark.

"...Needs to recover. We should move her." I hear Jeff say quietly. I slowly open my eyes. Newt notices first.

"You're awake! They almost lost you." He says wiping tears from his face. Minho looks the same, quickly wiping the tears from his face. I gently lift my head to see Jeff bandaging my stomach tightly and securely.

"We'll get a stretcher to bring you to an actual bed." Jeff and the other boy stand up and run off. I let my head fall back to the ground. Newt and Minho look at me, slightly in anger mostly in concern.

"I'm fine." I mutter my voice felling like cotton.

"You almost died! I could see the life draining out of you!" Minho says shortly. I close my eyes.

"I'm sorry." Minho lets out a groan.

"Why didn't you tell us about it earlier? We could've helped!" He says again his voice strained.

"I didn't think it was a big deal." I say opening my eyes. Newt is shaking his head and Minho is staring at me in shock. Jeff comes over with a stretcher. They carry me into the Homestead and into the room I was in the first night. Jeff leaves. Minho stares at me. I prop myself up gently. I can't take their silence.

"I couldn't! Okay?" I burst out. Four eyes stare at me.

"I'm not allowed to show weakness and I'm not allowed to ask for help! I had to endure the pain!" I avoid their hard gaze. Newt sits beside me and Minho sits on my other side.

"Why would you think that?" Newt asks softly.

"That's what they told me." Tears come to my eyes as I remember the lectures.

"Well, you're here now. You can tell us anything. We will never leave you and will always take care of you." Minho says kissing my forehead and leaving the room. Newt is silent for a bit.

"The weakest people are only weak because they have been strong far to long." He says startling me. I study his hands as he wraps them around me. I nod understanding what he's saying. He pulls away.

"Can I check the bandage?" He asks nervously. Why, I don't know. I pull up my shirt to the bra line. He looks it over. His eyes stray to my back for one minute. Confusion spreads out over his face.

"What's this?" He asks gently touching a space on my back. As soon as he touches it the sound comes back. I draw my hands to my ears and bite my lip to keep from screaming out. An image goes through my mind.

 _I'm sitting in a white, shiny classroom. Newt sits at the desk besides me and Minho sits behind me. I see others but I can't remember their names. I can't see the teachers face clearly, like it's being blurred from my memory. Newt leans over to me and whispers something in my ear while the teachers back is turned. I giggle quietly. The teacher whirls around and points at Newt._

 _"_ _To the pole! You spoke when not spoken to!" She says taking out a long whip. I stand up quickly._

 _"Stop!" I say loudly. The teacher turns to me._

 _"What did you say?" Her voice sounds like a robot._

 _"I'll take his place! Don't hurt him!" I say quickly. Newt turns to me terror on his face._

 _"No! Don't Anna!" He says as the teacher pulls him away from the pole and sits him down. The teacher points her bony finger at him._

 _"Not a muscle." She grabs me roughly by the hair and makes me kneel against a pole. The whip cracks against my back three times. Tears brim in my eyes. I cry out each time. Then the teacher pulls me roughly by my hair back to my seat._

I open my eyes suddenly as the sound stops. Newt is holding me. Pain erupts in my stomach. I try to tune it out. Tears fall out of my eyes.

"Want to talk about it?" He asks quietly. I shake my head curling into him. He holds me tighter muttering soft, kind words. I take a deep breath and start talking.

"We were in a classroom, surrounded by kids. You talked to me behind our teachers back. She spun around and demanded you go to the whipping pole. I took your place though. You didn't talk to me for a week after that. Every time you saw me after that you gave me a hug and didn't say anything." I laugh a little wincing as my stomach hurts again. "But anyways the teacher wiped me three times and sat me back down in my chair. I remember looking at all the chairs, seeing them stained with red. Blood." I say shuddering in his arms.

"I'm so, so sorry Anna." He says tightening his grip on my arms.

"Why?" I ask.

"Well I touched the scar...from a whip... and you got the flashback." He says cautiously.

"It's okay. I'm fine. Just don't leave." I say cuddling up to him. He nods.

"Anna. If you're okay to, whenever you want, I want to hear about your training and the rules of it so we can avoid them in the future?" Newt whispers, his voice revealing how scared he is.

"Okay. Sure." I say moving just a bit closer to him. We stay like that for a really long time before Newt talks again.

"It was really scary to see you like that. Please, never do that again, please." He says tears falling onto my neck. I nod, tears pooling into my eyes. I don't know how long we sit there until a small knock sounds on the door. I think we might've fallen asleep. The sun is in the sky. I sit up pulling Newt with me.

"Guys, breakfast." Minho's face appears in the doorway. I nod and ease myself out of bed. Newt helps me stand. I fall back to the bed not being able to support my own weight.

"Ugh! I hate being so weak!" I pound the bed.

"I'll get you some breakfast." Newt says. I can hear Minho and Newt talking as the walk away from my room. A few minutes later Newt is back with some food.

"What were you guys talking about?" I ask as he enters.

"I'm staying here with you today. Just to make sure you're really okay." Newt sits besides me and offers me the porridge. I look at it. I can't make my hand move. I can't take the food.

"What is it?" Newt asks. I turn away looking out the window. Minho and the other runners take off into the Maze.

"First rule; eat what you find, not what's given." I whisper. Newt moves to my side and wraps his arms around me.

"Have you eaten anything since you've been here?" He asks quietly. I shake my head.

"Anna!" He exclaims. I turn to look him in the eye.

"Newt, I've gone weeks without food before." I say trying to judge his reaction. His eyes harden and he looks angry. At me, I can't tell.

"So you really won't eat this?" He asks looking at the bowl.

"I-I'll eat it." I say grabbing the bowl. I spoon some of the porridge into my mouth. It's not bad but I'm still hesitant about taking another bite. Newt looks at me happily as I take four more bites. I put the bowl back; I can't break that rule.

I just can't do it.


End file.
